I didn’t blog yesterday … a LONG day … there were no special guests, though there were some breaks in the business for celebrations of our Nation’s birthday and also a touching moment for our brothers and sisters from Virginia.  For a day, we were all Hokies.

All in all just a long day of business … your typical discussions about legislative platforms, resolutions and policy statements.  While it can get long, it’s also is thrilling to see this process in action.  To see such a large body able to make decisions and deliberate is a testament to this democratic process.

And above all, even though there are some issues that divide us (how could there not be when you’ve got 3.2 million members represented here by about 10,000 delegates?) … there is much more that brings us together.

Looking forward to hearing from Obama, Huckabee, and Biden today.  I hear Biden commented how happy he was to be speaking on the same day as such a clean and articulate African-American candidate.  Okay, he didn’t, but I couldn’t resist.

Solidarity. Forever.

This afternoon we had the chance to celebrate the Little Rock Nine.  It was a touching moment to see six of The Nine in attendance and to hear about their courage and success.

The delegation also joined in singing a rendition of We Shall Overcome.

It was wonderful and moving to watch the group march across the stage and leave the auditorium walking through a crowd – this time not hostile and angry, but excited and encouraging.

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Not to be outdone, one of the delegates followed the Little Rock Nine Celebration by going to the mic and asking abot the food situation for tomorrow.  Apparently there are not many vendors in the building and the Reading Terminal Market will be closed for the 4th.

Are you serious?

We just sat and witnessed history and you are asking about ONE MEAL for tomorrow?  We just celebrated those who dealt with REAL difficulties and we’re complaining about not having enough food vendors?

Beautiful.  Just beautiful.

4:00 > Governor Richardson is introduced to the delegation and entered wearing a slate-colored suit, white shirt and striped tie.

My paraphrase:

Educators are the glue, education is the background, and it’s time you get the praise and recognition you deserve.

Team NEA recognizes the contributions of all education employees – you are the unsung hero in this country, whether you are the teacher, the support professional, the bus driver, the cafeteria worker, the custodian – you each deserve our respect, not just rhetoric, but fair and decent compensation. Too often you have been ignored, underpaid, and blamed. When I am President, that will change.

I was able to get 40 percent of the Republican vote in a Red state – I don’t know what they were smoking

Education is more important than anything else our government does. The fate of nations depends more on educating youth than any other factor.

In New Mexico, I was very proud to bring back collective bargaining for public employees.

I know you won’t make a decision based on fame or how much money someone has, you are going to support the person who has always stood with you, who does more than just talk about change, but has made it happen.

A Child is more than a Test Score – I couldn’t agree more.

It’s unfair to blame and point fingers at our educators when we’ve ignored other factors …. we know we can’t improve our schools with unfunded mandates and unfair accountability. Out students must have the support they need to be successful.

Are unfair and crazy things happening in your schools too? It’s got to stop. I am committed to bringing fair accountability and support.

We must focus on quality teachers – in our state we raised teacher salaries and created a tiered system …

My first committment … I would move the country to an average starting salary of 40,000 a year for teachers.

Second, it is clear school readiness is key to success – we must fund headstart programs.

Third, I will state right here, I will name a teacher to be Secretary of Education! (rousing applause) … anybody interested?

Fourth, we must take action to improve children’s health and nutrition. I’ll get rid of junk food in schools. PE will be mandatory, every child will get a healthy breakfast.

Vouchers are not the answer – we will never have them as President.

We do support charter schools, but they must be held to the same standards as other public schools.

Parents are critical … we need to find and fund parental involvement programs.

In New Mexico, we had a computer for every 7th grade student, and I would make that happen for every child in America.

I will fight for the creation of new math and science academies across the country, and girls and minorities will know they are welcome as well.

Every school will have arts in the school.

No Child Left Behind: a noble goal with unfair implementation and underfunding. It can and must be improved. When I am elected it will be improved or it will be abolished.

I believe in accountability when it is fair and schools are given the support they need. Bush promised to be the education president… we can not affrd to forget our children.

Get rid of the pass/fail model of AYP.

Provide a meaningful and honest picture of a school, using more than a single test score.

We need a fairer test and realistic timelines for ELL, and let us not forget special education students.

We need to extend the school year and school day …

The bottom line: I am not an educator – you. I am not in a classroom every day – you are. I am not the expert – you are. When you elect me, I will create a Blue Ribbon panel for education excellence – NEA needs to be at the table … we need to not just have teachers at the table, but teachers in the cabinet. Policy should be created from the bottom up and not the top down.

Together we can make public education strong.

Now here is the difference – all I want you to do, as you hear from all the candidates, ask yourself 3 things?

1. who has been there for me in the past?

2. who will be there for me in the future?

3. who has the skill to bring this country together, and not drive us apart.

Look at my record. I got it done and I will get it done. But I will need your help to do it.

Thank you. You are in a profession that America does not reward enough. You should be the crown jewel. I promise you respect, inclusion … I will defer to you. Mostly I am here to thank you, for your service despite overwhelming pressures and odds.

Very early in my term I would call in the NEA and our teachers and ask what we do with NCLB … not just revise it, we need to rewrite it. We need to get rid of some terrible initiatives – the provision the basically says we are going to give a pass/fail to schools not doing well … we should help those schools and students.

Min. $40,000 a year – how can any teacher start at 28 or 29 thousand a year and feed a family.

We need to revise our curriculum and increase math and science, and have a strong arts in the schools programs … preschool would be administered by schools and agencies and be optional but full-day kindergarten would be mandatory.

I don’t support a one-size-fits-all testing … testing should be determined by educators and schools, not beauraucrats in Washington.

Accountability should not be defined by a politician in Washington.

This President will have you at the table, helping me craft what is best for this country.

In all the debates, nobody asked about education … in the third debate I was asked to tell my top priority … I said it would be education … to make our schools stronger, to pay our teachers what they deserve. I will be talking about education every day of this campaign – not as an asterisk …

It all boils down to education.

2:30 > Kucinich is announced and enters, with his wife of 2 years (who is inches taller and about 30 years younger) wearing a navy suit, white shirt and red tie with small white dots. He also happens to be wearing the “A Child is More than a Test Score” sticker that’s been floating around this week on his lapel.

My paraphrase of his words:

I understand how critical it is for children to have these skills at an early age – we need a universal pre-K program for children ages 3-5 for learning music, art, language, reading, and social skills.

Education is a journey.

Went to parochial school … but the role of the teacher is the same.

Teachers understand what happens outside the classroom can effect what’s going on inside the classroom.

Above the entrance to the H of R is a statue of a woman with outstretched arm, protecting a child that’s sitting happily next to a pile of books … the title? “Peace Protecting Genius” … not with nuclear arms, but with the arm of eternal love.

This country needs to transition from war as an instrument of policy to peace as an instrument of policy.

ESEA: Fully-funded, with monetary incentives and opportunities for professional development.

Education is a Civil Right.

HR 676: Medicare for all … break the hold that for-profit insurance companies have on Washington.

Educat: To Lead Out and To Lead Towards … you are always holding that lamp up, though some children have trouble seeing. You are not just educating children to be good in the classroom and community, but to be citizens of the world.

Education funding is core … bottom line is we have to pay for the programs we advocate for. Funny, when we went to war, no one asked “how are you gonna pay for it?” …

I intend to double the ESEA budget, money to provide for support staff,

When I became mayor of Cleveland I stopped tax abatements …

Most of the resources in this country are devoted to war – everyone wants this country to be secure, but I know the difference between defense and offense. We spent more than the rest of the world combined on our military. The money is there right now – but we need to shift the emphasis. Let’s direct it toward education so we can grow the future leaders of America who will be smart enough to keep us out of war!

He also talked about reducing the number of tests, the cultural, educational and economic biases in the testing environment, etc. He reinforced the need to assess student progress … How about learning for the sake of learning, and recognizing that children learn differently. Don’t defeat the learning experience with testing, because then all you have is a generation of test-takers and not a generation of visionaries.

I’ve still got some cleaning up to do … but this morning I added the videos of Presidential candidate speeches. I’ll be blogging more throughout the day as items come up … and definitely as two candidates address the delegation today – Kucinich and Richardson.

4:40 > Dodd is introduced, wearing a dark suit with a white shirt and light blue tie. He opened with a great joke about introductions, showing his sense of humor.

My paraphrase of his words:

Deep appreciation for the NEA, especially those from Connecticut.

Thank you for being a voice for those who carry out some of the most important public work in the country.

100 percent voting record with the NEA

FMLA Act – with your support

First childcare legislation – with your support

I am a union guy. I support organized labor. I believe in organized labor. I won’t forget it. I’ll stand with Labor as president of the United States.

Nothing is more important than the education of our children.

What is the single most important issue America faces as a people? Difficult issue, but my answer for 26 years has been the education of the American child in a good and decent public school system.

My 5 year old goes to a public school in D.C.

I will always vehemently oppose the idea of vouchers when it comes to public education. We can not subsidize and support two school systems in our country.

Every student should have access to safe and modern buildings, up to date books, school nurses and counselors and the best teachers.

Shameful decision by the Supreme Court last week about diversity.

I come from a family of teachers.

Supporting our schools starts with supporting the professionals that our children spend their time with. We win when we trust you to know and do what is best for our children.

There is no greater challenge before us than reforming the NCLB Act … it begins today. Let’s get it done before the next president comes in.

I’ve been proud to work with this organization and to work with the NEA on the NCLB Reform Bill … not just talking the talk, but walking the walk on this issue.

Failure is not an option.

We need to increase flexibility for highly-qualified requirements. We need to look at more than one way of measuring student achievement and progress.

I’m not going to walk away from my record. Isn’t it about time we had a little experience in the White House?

No child with the ability, desire and determination to go on to college should ever be denied that opportunity because they are not wealthy enough.

At 63 years of age, I am the only candidate who gets mail from AARP and Diaper services (in reference to his 5 year old and 2 year old) … ‘there may be snow on the mountaintop …’

If we are truly interested in change in this country, it happens in the Oval Office. My daughter was born on September13, 2001 (due on 9/11) … what sort of country and world will my child grow up in?

I joined the Peace Corps out of college because an American President asked me to. They asked us to be part of something larger than ourselves, to be part of change and to make a difference.

America responded that way after 9/11. The President responded by saying to “go shopping” …

We have a limited amount of time to get this right. I want to offer hope and optimism and confidence…. to ask Americans to be part of something larger than themselves …

2:50 pm > Edwards showed up in a traditional navy suit, blue oxford and red, white and blue striped tie (and a yellow LiveStrong bracelet). And I think a $500 hair cut. He opened by sending love from his wife and reported she is doing well.

My paraphrase:

I will raise the minimum wage to $9.50 an hour. We need to change the way we think about poverty in America. No one should work full time in the US and live in poverty.

Do you want to spend your time preparing for the test, or teaching children?

All of my children attend public school.

We have two Americas – one for those who are doing extraordinarily well, and one for those who aren’t (he didn’t mention which America he lives in) …

We also have 2 public school systems.

God Bless the NEA. 150 years ago there was a lot wrong with America. But 150 years ago the NEA was born. And we still have so much work to do to build a public school system that works for everyone.

Can we finally, in America, treat teachers and ESPs with the dignity and respect they have earned for the work they do? Can we finally recognize how important this job is?

A test never taught a child anything.

Schools don’t teacher our children.

Teachers teach our children and prepare them for our future.

We need to make teaching attractive – it needs to be the profession of choice. We need to pay teachers more and recuit the best into the profession – incentive pay for teachers willing to teach in the places they are needed the most.

Somebody prepped him well, as he gave a few big shout-outs to ESPs and brought up the issues around Social Security offset.

We need a president who is willing to listen to teachers. No one knows better than you what we need to do.

We need to expand early childhood education. We need to make a serious effot to turn around schools that are struggling. We need to empower teachers. We need to lift up teachers who desperately want to do their job.

(He even held up a shirt from the convention and referred to the delegates as Brothers and Sisters) …

These tests do not tell us teachers are doing a good job, they do not tell us progress is bring made by children.

Was NCLB, which was never funded, intended to leave no child behind? Or was it intended as an excuse … and excuse to move away from public schools and toward vouchers?

We need to break down these two separate public schools systems we have … and I am proud of the fact that NEA is providing leadership on these issues.

How about, since America is about second chances, we have second chance schools in America for drop-outs to come back to.

The last thing we need to be doing is moving resources away from public schools through vouchers. Make sure the teachers get the support they need and deserve.

I want to say a word about he importance of organized labor in the USA. We know the things that need to be done to improve our public schools … what would we do without you? Without a powerful, collective voice – thousands and millions, speaking out on behalf of our children and education. I care deeply about poverty. The single greatest anti-poverty movement in our history is Organized Labor. If anyone can join the Rpublican party by signing a card, and worker in the country ought to be able to join a labor union the same way.

2:00 > Hilary Clinton is introduced. She actually looks as nice as I’ve seen her look in a long time – wearing a nice hot pink blazer and black slacks.

My paraphrase of her words:

We are part of the Village to help realize the God-given potential of every child. We can not talk about the American Dream, especially here in Philadelphia, and the ideals of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness unless we support education.

Let’s quit pointing fingers and start extending a helping hand.

Let’s stop setting policy based on ideology and do it the old-fashioned way – evidence-based decision making.

If you’re ready for change, I’m ready to lead!

We have to try whatever works to meet the individual needs of every child.

When I am President we will do away with the education decisions made by this administration.

If there is one place that should be free of political interference, it is our schools.

And we are going to start paying you like the professionals you are, especially at the hardest to staff schools … when people ask me why we have a teacher shortage, I tell them it’s because we have a respect shortage. It is not only about pay, but about resources. The average American teacher spends $450 out of their pockets for supplies. We don’t ask doctors to buy bandages or librarians to buy books.

You will not just have a partner in the White House, you will have a friend.

Charter schools must be held to the same standards as other public schools, and we have to be sure they do not drain the financial resources from public schools. I support public school choices, but vouchers should be off the table.

Education variety should be explored, and teachers should have more control over what happens in their buildings. We need to explore different governance structures in schools and districts.

I thought I might do a little live-blogging from the floor of the NEA-RA.

I’ve been here in Philadelphia for a few days already, but today is the first day when the actual Annual Meeting begins.

It started off with a bang – music, lights, dancing and more.

Just after 11:00 > The delegation of nearly 10,000 stood and recited aloud “The Call” that was shared at the founding of the NEA 150 years ago, also in Philadelphia. We then transitioned and a period-dressed character announced ‘Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now!” … followed by streamers, confetti and the delegation singing and dancing to “Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now” as President Reg Weaver made his way to the podium.

Several individuals were recognized and introduced and the delegation was welcomed to Philadelphia by the president of the Pennsylvania State Education Association and Ben Franklin himself. Unfortunately, the Governor of PA didn’t show up and only sent a letter to be read by the president of the PSEA. Not cool Mr. Rendell

Just after 12:00 > The official business of the Annual Meeting begins with action on Standing Rules. So far, nothing too exciting. But I bet you’ve never seen a group spend this much time and energy on adopting Standing Rules … I guess that’s what you get when you assemble the world’s largest? democratically-elected, decision-making body.

12:25 > I think everyone is eagerly anticipating the appearance of Hillary Clinton, the first of 8 presidential candidates scheduled to appear this week. Each will receive 15 minutes, and we’re told the time-limit will be strictly enforced. Following their 15 minutes, each candidate will be asked a couple questions, and their responses are supposed to be posted over at www.nea.org. I’ll see if I can get the video added here as well.

Today’s schedule includes Clinton at 1:30, Edwards at 2:30, and Dodd at 4:30. Tomorrow includes Kucinich at 2:30 and Richardson at 4:00. For some reason none will be here with us on the 4th of July … and on the final day of the RA, we’ll be address by Obama at 11:00, Huckabee at 2:00 and Biden a 4:00. I’m actually very imprssed that Huckabee agreed to show up. Apparently the only other Republican to even respond to the numerous invites was John McCain, who said his schedule did not allow him to be here. Apparently no other R even replied. So, regardless of anything else, I’ve got to tip my hat to Huckabee for being willing to show up.

12:50 > We’re going to take a break from action on Standing Rules and President Reg Weaver will be giving his opening keynote. Should be interesting as he has very little voice right now.

Reg is doing a great job connecting our historical foundation to our present focus. A lot of talk about valuing individuals, the importance of preparing students for the Information Age … and a reminder that this is why our students and schools should not be judged on only one “one-size-fits-all” test. And, Reg continues that even if we meet the goals of NCLB testing, it won’t be our children will have more opportunities or be able to compete. The purpose of education is to give young people the tools they need to fulfill and satisfy the meaning of learning. That is the purpose of education, to think for themselves and solve problems and pursue happiness. Students from all over the world come here. We can take pride in what our system has accomplished, but we can not rest on our laurels, because for many the right to a quality education is still being denied. We can not rest.

Reference to Brown and to the Little Rock 9 – dealing crushing blows to legal segregation … but today the promise of Brown and the legacy of the Nine have not been fully realized. Last week’s Supreme Court ruling will make it even harder.

NCLB assumed schools alone could close the achievement gap. but we can’t close the other chasms. We know that testing and accountability alone will not close the gaps. We need high quality early childhood ed. program and program s that encourage parental involvement, and smaller class sizes, competitive pay and opportunities for all for professional development. We need tutoring and mentoring and other programs to help children at risk BEFORE they fall behind. We need a national statute to keep children in school.

We have had enough studies on these issues. We know that programs like these will work. The time for talk is OVER. It is now time for action.

A call goes out to put an end to putting out future in the hands of corporations through tax breaks and loopholes… it is time to invest in our children. We don’t have to invent the wheel. There is a successful model … the Agricultural Extension service has worked wonders for the farmers of America. A similar program program can produce the same results for the entrepreneurs of he 21st century, developing the human capital that is our nation’s greatest strength.

Reg finished strong with a call to action to advocate for the needs for children … and the right to be included in education policy decisions. We must insist our voices are heard. We must engage in the political process. We must demand that candidates acknowledge the basic right of every child to a quality education and then we must hold them accountable.

There ain’t no stoppin’ us now. We’re on the move.

I didn’t have the privilege of watching the brawl between Chris Young of the Padres and “D-Lee” of the Cubs yesterday … but I did watch it on YouTube.

The funny thing is, I read the news reports of the incident before I saw it.  And in the reports, I heard how Zambrano had already made it to the clubhouse after pitching, that he was changing his jersey when he became aware of the incident, and how he went to the field just to break things up and separate people, finishing his comments with “Thank God, nobody was hurt”.

Interesting.  Watch the video.  Then tell me the cool-headed Carlos went out there to separate people.  If it wasn’t so ridiculous, it might be funny.

Oh, and for the record, I think Young could have destroyed Lee …